I Don't Fall in Love, But For You I Will
by Miranda de la Costa
Summary: Krystina Benoit has fought tooth and nail to become a WWE Diva. After being groomed by APA, things get complicated when one of the mentors falls for her.
1. Don't Fear the Reaper

Krystina Benoit had been with the World Wrestling Entertainment since she was sixteen. She could remember her watching her father wrestle backstage and desperately wanting to go help him whenever she saw him backed into a corner. In that particular match she was watching, her father, Chris Benoit was facing off against Chris Jericho. She was watching Chris Jericho placing her father into his move, The Walls of Jericho and seeing him writhe in pain she could stand it no more and ran to the ring. She ran with all her might into the ring and jumped on the turnbuckle. The crowd was cheering her on, with no idea that this should not be happening. She turned with her back towards the other wrestlers. She sailed off the turn buckle in a backflip and went over Jericho's head only to push him face first into the mat. The crowd went wild. Her father stared up at her from the floor with a look that concerned her. He didn't have a face that showed that he was grateful for the help; no he had one of complete and utter rage. He quickly took the opportunity to pin Jericho and take the win. After the referee raised his hand in victory , he grabbed her arm and lead her up the ring and backstage. As soon as he was out of the crowd's range he quickly turned on her,

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" She sputtered,

"Daddy, I'm sorry I just got so worried that you were going to lose your match that I thought I could help…"

"HELP ME? What the fuck were you thinking? You could get me fired! Vince McMahon is very particular about the matches and you threw everything off, do you know what this means? They'll have to rewrite the scripts! What's worse, you could have been hurt!" Her father went on and on about how disappointed he was with her and how he'll have to tell her mom, her stepmother Nancy, about what she did. Suddenly a woman with long brown, curly hair appeared,

"Chris, Dad wants to see you and Krystina at the office immediately." Krystina felt her heart plummet to her stomach. Everything her father had said would happen was happening and she fully expected her father to lose the job he had worked so hard to attain because of her stupidity. Chris threw her a dark look and they both followed Stephanie to Vince McMahon's office. Krystina felt her feet get heavier with each step the closer they got to the office. She couldn't believe what she had gotten herself into. She was calling herself all the inappropriate names she could think of in the book. When they were reached the office, a very stern Vince McMahon greeted them,

"Thank you both for coming so quickly, please have a seat." Visibly shaking, Krystina did as she was told and firmly looked at her feet. She felt so shameful that she couldn't even look Mr. McMahon in the eyes, much less her father. She could feel her eyes stinging with tears and silently prayed that they wouldn't fall. After a moment of awkward silence she heard her father bark,

"Well, what do you have to say for yourself?" Krystina flinched,

"Mr. McMahon, sir, I am so sorry for what I've done. My father had nothing to do with this. I completely did this on my own and he had no idea what I was going to do. So if anyone should be punished, it should be me." She looked up to meet Mr. McMahon's eyes. His mouth formed a pout as he was shaking his head as if the apology was enough. He suddenly smiled catching the Benoits off guard,

"That was one hell of a match! And where did you learn that move? Not even my seasoned guys could have pulled that off!" If there was a God, Krystina Benoit was now a believer and had promised to head off the first Sunday she had available. Her mind couldn't comprehend what she was hearing. She looked at her father, who had a look of relief and pride on his face,

"Well you know she is a Benoit…" Krystina felt her eyes roll into the back of her head. Of course her dad would say that. He was so hypocritical he was yelling at her not fifteen minutes ago and now he was praising her? She heard her name called,

"Krystina, how would you like to become a WWE Diva?" She felt her eyebrows nearly disappear into her hairline, "I-I-I would be honored sir, it's all I ever wanted to do with my life." Vince smiled,

"Good! So how about we make a proposition, I will send you off to wrestling school for a couple of years and when you are eighteen I would like to sign you for a temporary contract and then we'll take it from there. What do you think?"

Krystina could only nod as she signed the paperwork and left the office with a grin on her face. This was her moment and no one would take that away from her.


	2. Sweet Dreams Are Made of These

It had been years since Krystina had made the faithful decision to run into the ring during her father's match. Two years after the ring interruption, she found herself in front of the wrestling school, NXT. As Mr. McMahon promised, they kept an eye on her and taught her the fundamentals of wrestling; They were impressed with her and regarded her as a natural born talent . Unbeknownst to them her Dad had taught her moves years before she even decided to make her "entrance". At thirteen, she had nagged him so much that at one opportunity he and her uncle Eddie Guerrero took her down to a training ring at a local gym.

"_Alright Tina," Her father called her by her nickname, "This is it; this is big people territory. I'm going to clothesline you and I want you to drop to the mat as hard as you can because you have to make the audience believe it. Uncle Eddie is going to show you how to hit the mat, so watch carefully." Krystina turned to look at the Hispanic man who in one graceful move fell onto his back with a loud thump. Krystina silently yelped to herself. She looked at her dad and then her uncle who got up immediately from the mat and was watching her with a small smirk on his face. She cocked her head up a little bit and looked her father dead in the eye. She knew what he was doing, she wasn't dumb. He was hoping to scare her from her dreams of wrestling in the WWE. She'll show him; she won't let him have the satisfaction of being right. She took a few breaths and spread her arms. Closing her eyes, she let herself fall backwards and land on her back. She felt her back sting due to the contact but she didn't say anything. She wouldn't let them have the satisfaction. She looked up at them and saw them nod their heads in approval._

"_Alright Nena, let's go to work." Eddie helped her up and soon the three of them were working through the foundation drills. Hours later when she was done, she and her father bid Eddie a farewell and went home. Krystina started to really feel sore; she started limping and slowly made her way to the front door of the house. Chris chuckled,_

"_Are you alright?" Tina tried to hide her limping,_

"_Yes Daddy, I'm fine. Just a little sore that's all." She smiled, "Thanks for teaching me. I'll text Uncle Eddie saying thank you again." Chris smiled, showing his missing tooth, "That's my girl. Get upstairs and go soak in some hot water to relax those muscles." She nodded. Went into the house and greeted her mother, Nancy and her little brother Daniel. Nancy was not her "real" mother but she had raised Krystina from a young age that she regarded her as mother because her egg donor had completely abandoned her and wanted nothing to do with her. When her brother was born she was thrilled and would raise that boy as if he was her son. It was the least she could do after what Nancy had done for her. Krystina limped upstairs to the bathroom and shut the door. She undressed herself and ran the warm water. As soon as the water was at a warm temperature and the bathtub was filled she slipped in and relaxed. She could hear her parents arguing, although it was muffled. She knew what it was about but she hoped that her brother couldn't hear them. Little kids shouldn't hear their parents arguing, it's bad for the soul. She took a deep breath slipped under the water._

_Ah, peace and quiet. She hated when they argued. Especially when it involved her; her mother didn't want her to join the wrestling business because she knew that wrestlers and divas usually do not have a good outcome in life._

She felt someone join her on the couch she was sitting on. She was daydreaming about the long road she had taken since her introduction to the WWE; the person joining her had brought the now twenty five year old to the present. She looked up and saw that bright, white signature smile that she knew so well.

"Hey John John" She smiled. The "John John" she was referring to was of course no other than John Bradshaw Layfield, part of one of the best tag teams that Krystina believed to exist in wrestling history. He was another of her dad's friends and was really a genuine and nice guy. For a reason unknown to Krystina, he had taken her under her wing and helped her learn even more about the wrestling business. They had grown close as friends and hung out together along with her best friend Felicity Sequoya , her boyfriend Dave Batista and Bradshaw's partner, Ron Smith also known as Farooq. Krystina messed up his hair, laid down on the couch and giggled inwardly. Bradshaw laughed and poked her gently in her side. The short haired, clean shaven man got down on his knees and leaned in so that their faces were close,

"What did I tell you about messing up my hair, woman?" Krystina smirked to herself as she feigned innocence,

"Why Mr. Layfield I don't remember you ever bringing up the issue of me messing with your hair." She caught him off guard by tracing her finger down his cheek and staring at him dead in the eyes with her big, blue eyes. Krystina giggle as she saw that his eyes widened at the contact and his breath hitched. John quickly regained composure and was fuming as he realized that she was playing him to take advantage,

"Yes, I did bring the issue up several times. Try me again and see what happens." Seeing that she put him in a bad mood she hugged him and squeezed tightly, 

"John John I was just kidding. I'm sorry." Bradshaw's bad mood was instantly gone as they held each other until a voice cut through the silence,

"Am I interrupting something?" If looks could kill John Bradshaw Layfield would be a serial killer. He gave Felicity a damn-you-straight-to-hell-woman look. Felicity inwardly laughed. She knew Bradshaw had a thing for her best friend. He came around all the time and not for her and Dave's benefit but because he liked being around Krystina so much. She was just frustrated that her best friend was either too blind or dumb to see that she and Bradshaw could be a great couple. She snickered to herself. Krystina looked at her friend skeptically,

"What the hell are you concocting in that tiny little brain of yours woman?" Felicity feigned innocence,

"Tina I swear you don't know me well at all, do you? I was just coming to see you and here I come in seeing you and Layfield holding each other like the cover of some tawdry romance novel." This time it was Krystina's turn to scowl,

"God damn it Felicity, it's not like we're making out every single minute we're together UNLIKE a pair of people I know." Felicity blushed. Of course she had to bring up Dave Batista, her Achilles' heel. They had been dating for a year now and Felicity had to admit this was the happiest that she had ever felt in her life second to the moment when she first performed for the WWE. Regaining composure Felicity piped up,

"Well, maybe if you would pay attention to your surroundings, you might find someone who is more than willing to make out with you." Tina tucked her mid back length, black hair with thick pink highlights behind her ears,

"Really? There's no one here who I want to get in a relationship with. John John and I are good friends, and obviously I'm not gay so that rules you out and obviously Dave is out of the question because you're dating him!" Felicity shot a sympathetic look to Bradshaw who had a look like Old Yeller did when Travis shot him. Felicity held her hands up in surrender,

"Okay! As always Tina you win the case! Anyway I came into tell you that they booked you for a tag team match. They want you and your Dad versus Rikishi and Torrie Wilson." Krystina smiled,

"It's been a while since I've been in a match with Daddy. This is going to be fun. See you guys later." She left. Bradshaw watched her leave and sighed. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Felicity smiling down at him,

"Cheer up John. She'll come around soon or later." He shook his head,

"I hope so. It's really painful to be so close to her yet so far." The long, raven haired woman nodded,

"I know exactly what you mean. I had to wait three long years for Dave to come around. Also, Krystina helped him along too. So no worries, I'll help her along for you." Bradshaw smiled,

"Thanks." She waved and left. She ran into Farooq. He smiled,

"Hey baby girl, did you see Bradshaw?" She nodded,

"He's in that room. Go cheer him up, he's bummed about Krystina." Farooq nodded and went inside. He saw Bradshaw resting his elbows on his knees with his head down. He hated seeing his partner like this, ever since he took that girl under his wing and taught her everything he knows he has been depressed about Krystina. Farooq put his hands in his pockets and sighed,

"Damn."


	3. Denying

She made her way backstage. She had spent the last two hours in hair and makeup. She had checked herself in the mirror and loved what she saw. She looked at least presentable for the show tonight. She adjusted her long, tight pants. She always wore tasteful clothing. Her parents raised her to dress modestly and to not let it all hang out. She had to fight Vince on this because he wanted to always put her in skimpy clothing, and put her in bra and panties matches against the other Divas.

"_Hell no! I am not going to wear any slutty ass clothing to the ring. I'm not like those other girls. I want to be admired for my skills on the microphone and the ring. Not for my big tits and ass." Vince got in her face,_

"_You do what I say or I'll kick your ass out of the company." She held her ground,_

"_Go ahead and do it! See how merchandizing for the Divas go under. My t-shirts are the highest grossing merchandise among the divas and hell comes third to John Cena's. Plus you'll see women disappear from the audience. They come to see me and bring their daughter's to the ring so that they can have a role model to look up to." She made eye contact with Vince and saw that he was silent and looking dead at her. That was what told her that she really has his attention. She sighed,_

"_Look, if you have to make me be sexy a few times every so often, go for it. But please don't destroy this character that I've created. I've worked too hard to get her where I want her to be." Vince chuckled,_

"_You know, I never had a Diva argue with me before and win. You've got a deal. You can wear what you want, but please…make it look good." She stuck out her hand and they shook, _

"_You've got a deal sir."_

Krystina smiled as she recalled the memory. That was the first time she had ever really stood up for herself . She honestly meant what she said to Vince. She remembered watching WWE as a little kid and always complaining about the women wearing the skimpy clothing and promised her mom Nancy that when she became a Diva that she wouldn't wear those types of clothes. She continued walking down the hall when she spotted Bradshaw and Farooq. She gave them a small wave, "See you guys after the show!" They both nodded as they watched her walk by. Bradshaw called after her,

"Want to hang after the show?" She looked back as she continued walking,

"Of course I do!" She smiled and waved bye again. He smiled after her. Perhaps he could get everyone to hang out at the hotel where they could have a good time. He went around looking for Felicity and saw her sitting on Dave's lap with her head resting on his forehead and they were both laughing. Dave acknowledged Bradshaw which caused Felicity to turn around and smile,

"Hey Bradshaw!" He smiled and waved, "So I was hoping after tonight's show we could back to my place, hang out, play some poker, how does that sound?" Dave looked at Felicity who nodded,

"That sounds awesome, we'll be there!" John nodded in relief,

"Oh good! We'll meet back here after the show." They said goodbye to each other as Bradshaw left. Well at least with everyone there it won't be as awkward.

Krystina reached the area where she needed to be to make an entrance. She saw her father standing there, "Daddy!" he turned and smiled when he saw her,

"Tina!" She hugged him, "how's my baby girl?" She giggled,

"Everything's fine Daddy. I'm just happy that I get to have a match with you that's all." He nodded,

'Me too doll face." Benoit's music came on and he turned to her, "Well let's rock n' roll." He went through the curtain and the crowd came alive. She felt butterflies come alive again. She was always nervous going out there. She said a quiet prayer that everything goes well and that everyone walked away unharmed. A Day To Remember's song Sticks & Bricks came on. The crowd went wild. She took a deep breath in and jogged out. She started head banging on the stage, and then threw her hands in the air. She ran down the ramp and into the ring where she went to each turnbuckle and did her salute. Each side of the arena greeted her with cheers. The Benoits got on their side of the ring while they waited for their opponents.

Bradshaw and Farooq were playing poker in Bradshaw's hotel room while paying attention to Krystina's match. Honestly, Bradshaw could not pay attention to the game because he was watching Krystina's match intently. She was working the ring well, and destroying Torrie Wilson. Hell, she even went a few rounds with Rikishi; she wasn't scared. He felt pride well up in his chest as he had helped her refine her skills.

"_Ah, hell you're doing it wrong! You're going to hurt yourself and your opponent by holding them like that!" He yelled at her. By that point he was growing fond of her because she wasn't a dandelion Diva that would cry because someone was yelling at her. She would yell back and fight harder and that was what he liked: someone who could hold their own,_

"_Sorry Boss. Let me try again." She performed the move again, this time she nailed it. He smiled in approval,_

"_All right now you go it." Bradshaw gave her a high five and she high fived Farooq in victory; Bradshaw saw that she was proud of herself and was growing confident in her skills. He was glad to see her happy since most of the time she would be groaning in frustration even yell when she didn't get the moves. Now she was giggling and smiling a big smile. He felt his heartbeat quickening and he mentally yelled at himself. There was no way that he should be having feelings for a nineteen year old. Her father would kill him and not to mention he would become a social pariah. She looked up into his eyes and smirked,_

"_All right then Boss, how about you versus me?" Ron laughed at her incredulously,_

"_Ah, shit Bradshaw she called you out!" Bradshaw laughed at her gutsy challenge,_

"_I don't know little girl I don't think you can handle me." She chuckled,_

"_Well it's okay to admit that you're scared you'll lose Boss." Bradshaw let out a belly laugh. The girl had a mouth on her like no woman he had ever met. _

"_All right one on one, you and me." She smiled as they both got into their ready position,_

"_Hey Boss?"_

"_Yeah?" She brought her fists up,_

"_Don't hold back." _

The crowd's reaction to her finisher caused him to come back to the present. He saw Krystina go in and pin Rikishi for the win. He chuckled when he recalled the conversation about her finisher,

"_Well, what are you calling your finisher?" She rolled her eyes,_

"_I already told you, The Bitch Stopper." Bradshaw frowned,_

"_Well why the hell are you calling it that?" She threw her arms up in the air in frustration,_

"_Because, it stops bitches in their tracks!" The two men couldn't help but laugh when seeing this young girl dressed in an APA tank top and yoga pants with her hair done in braided pigtails gave that explanation._ Bradshaw shook his head, laughed and concentrated on the game. About two hours later, later, There was a knock on the door,

"Come in." Farooq called. The door opened with Felicity and Krystina giggling and joking around. Krystina made her way to Bradshaw and sat on the chair next to him. Farooq frowned,

"Where's Dave?" Felicity shrugged,

"He said he's coming later, he wanted to freshen up and told me to go on without him." Farooq nodded, showing that he understood while Krystina turned her attention to Bradshaw,

"So how did I do John, John?" Bradshaw high fived her,

"Girl, you killed it. You made the APA training you got all those years ago look really good." She blushed at the compliment. Bradshaw always was so supportive of her,

"Well you know I had some great teachers!" Farooq nodded. Felicity's face lit up,

"Hey, how about we play some poker?" Everyone agreed eagerly. Krystina frowned and looked around,

"Wait but we don't have any beer or cigars…" Everyone groaned in frustration until Krystina chimed in again, "I know! Felicity and I will run to the store and we'll be right back!" Krystina grabbed Felicity's hand and they ran off to her car, and drove to the nearest store. They grabbed a cart and walked to the liquor aisle. Felicity watched her as she looked at the packs of beer that they were selling. She smirked,

"So what was that hug all about earlier today?" Krystina looked at her,

"I pissed him off by teasing him so that's how I apologized." She decided to push a little harder,

"Sure…" to her amazement Krystina blushed. She had never seen her friend blush before. Felicity helped her friend pick up the two large packs of beer. Felicity sighed,

"Tina, we're friends right?" The other diva nodded,

"Of course Felicity, you're my best friend." Felicity took a deep breath. Here's goes nothing,

"Would you date John?" She saw Krystina's brow furrow. She saw pain in her eyes that Felicity didn't think that the question she just asked would cause. Krystina sighed,

"Felicity, why…" The other Diva cut her off,

"It's just a question Tina, it's girl talk!" the other diva turned to look at her,

"He would never go for a girl like me. Have you seen the other Divas? They're the types he probably likes and will date. Not to mention he's at least ten years my senior…" She looked down at the floor and a certain memory came to her mind.

"_Ow, fuck that fucking hurts!" She cried out and sat down on the gym floor. Bradshaw ran over to her,_

"_Tina, let me see." She held out her hand and he delicately cradled her hand in his with her palm facing up. A blister had formed on her hand and had busted open. Farooq handed him the first aid kit. He motioned for her to follow him into the bathroom nearby. He picked her up and put her on the sink,_

"_All right, let me see your hand." She obediently held her hand out and he ripped open an alcohol pad and started cleaning the blister. She looked up at him. He was intently cleaning her blister and did not even notice her watching him. His shiny, black hair was hanging over his face. She smiled warmly. She loved this man who was her mentor, protector and friend. Suddenly he looked up and saw they locked eyes. Krystina felt the color creep onto her face and quickly put her head down. Bradshaw smirked but didn't say _anything_. He finished by putting a band aid on her hand, "Well you're good to go!" She smiled,_

"_Thanks Boss, back to drills right?" He chuckled,_

"_That's right! Get your ass out there."_

"So you do like him or not?" Krystina snapped,

"FOR FUCK'S SAKE CAN WE STOP HAVING THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLY CONVERSATION?!" Felicity looked around and thanked her stars that no one was around when her friend yelled at her,

"All right geez, sorry!" she couldn't help but smile as her friend walked deeper into the aisle because she got the answer that she wanted. Oh yes, Krystina Benoit was smitten with Bradshaw.


	4. Every Morning

On the car ride back to Bradshaw's the tension between the girls was palpable. Felicity looked over at Krystina; the girl was wearing her hair down and while wearing a knit hat with one of her WWE line of t-shirts with long, baggy cargo pants. Her mouth was pressed into a hard line. Felicity sighed feeling really guilty for getting under her best friend's skin,

"Tina, I'm sorry I didn't mean to push the Bradshaw question on you so hard." The other woman's features softened as she accepted her friend's apology,

"No, I shouldn't have acted the way I did. I just…" She sighed, "I really do like Bradshaw. I always did since I was a kid. I mean he was a big name back in the day and he took me under his wing. The only way I didn't get in trouble and got into the company because of my dad. But Bradshaw and Farooq took me in and honed my shitty ass skills further than my old man did. He's my mentor and a friend. Felicity, I really doubt that he would see me anything other than the nineteen year old kid he trained all those years ago…"

"Tina, I think you'd be surprised. He-" They pulled into the parking lot of the hotel. Krystina turned to look at her cutting her off,

"Look. I'm not about to force anything to happen. I don't want ruin a great friendship and cause tension. If things happen, great if not. I'll get over it and it's as if everything as it should be. Please don't mention anything to anyone, things will just get awkward. Pinky promise?" The young woman held out her right pinky finger. Felicity looked down at her friend's finger and then back up at her,

"Pinky promise." She locked her left pinky with her friend's pinky and smiled at each other. They both got out of the car and grabbed the packs of beer and the cigars and went up the stairs. When they got to Bradshaw's apartment they knocked on the door. Bradshaw opened the door and rubbed his hands together when he saw that what the girls were bringing,

"All right! Now it's a party. Farooq, look they bought the good beer too!" He took the packs from each of the girls and put them on the floor. Without thinking he bent down and kissed Krystina on the cheek. Like a deer in headlights, Krystina froze in place and silently prayed that she wouldn't blush,

"Well this is my favorite brand…" Everyone's attention was diverted when Felicity saw that Dave was there,

"Baby!" She ran and jumped into his lap. He laughed,

"Hello Gorgeous." He kissed her on the lips and Krystina couldn't help but smile at them. She was happy that her best friend had someone who loved her. She felt someone's eyes on her and she turned to see that Bradshaw looking at her. Feeling the tension, she stuck her tongue out at him and laughed causing him to laugh as well. They all sat around the table and they started cracking open beer cans. Krystina held up her beer and everyone followed suit,

"May we continue kicking ass in all we do. And if life drifts us apart may we remember the good times always." Dave chimed,

"Hear, Hear!" They all clicked their beers together and began dealing the cards.

Hours went by as the five friends consumed beers and played poker. The women joined in on everything except the smoking of cigars. They were all laughing and enjoying each other's company until the wee hours of the morning. When the time to go came it turned out that Bradshaw had beaten them by winning the most games out of any of them. Everyone helped clean up and slowly everyone started to leave bidding each other goodbyes and promises to see them later. The only ones left in the hotel room were Bradshaw and Krystina each feeling the effects of the alcohol they had consumed. Feeling tipsy Krystina asked,

"Can I spend the night? I'm in no condition to drive." Bradshaw nodded walking to her,

"You could always sleep with me in the bed." He chuckled. Krystina walked up to him looking up into his eyes. The man had a good six inches on her but she knew that he wouldn't hurt her,

"As tempting as that sounds sir, I don't think so. I've got to keep my dignity." She turned to walk away but Bradshaw grabbed her arm, "Don't mess…with…me…" Bradshaw unexpectedly fell forward. Out of reflex, Krystina caught Bradshaw using all of her strength to not let him fall to the floor,

"Oh shit John! Wake up, I can't hold you!" She looked around and found the bed room a few feet away. She wasn't going to leave him on the floor. Using the remainder of her strength she dragged him to the bedroom placed him on the bed. She took off his shoes and shirt. Her eyes landed on his jeans. She would have to take them off because there was no way he would be comfortable in the jeans. She went for the belt and jeans buttons but hesitated. She undid the buttons and pulled the jeans off of him. She folded the clothes neatly and put them on the side for now. Bradshaw stirred only to move up the bed and lay on his back. The effects of the alcohol seem to only worsen as time went by and with the monumental effort she made with bringing an unconscious two hundred and ninety pound Bradshaw to bed. She threw herself on the bed before she too passed out from too much alcohol.

Bradshaw opened his eyes as the sunlight streaked into the room. A headache immediately greeted him as he rubbed his temples. Realization suddenly hit him hard. He checked under the covers and saw that he was only in his boxers. He heard soft breathing next to him and nearly died of a heart attack. There was Krystina sleeping peacefully next to him. Part of him was happy because he always wanted to be this close to her, but the other part was scared shitless of what would happen when she wakes up and what would happen if her father, HIS friend, found out about this. He relaxed a little bit to watch her. Her features were relaxed as she slept peacefully. Her black and pink hair was in her face so he tucked it behind her ear. She involuntarily smirked at the contact. Her eyes slowly fluttered opened and she looked up at him

"Good morning sunshine!" she sleepily whispered. He chuckled,

"Good morning yourself." She giggled,

"That was quite a night we had last night." He frowned,

"Tina, I'm sorry if…" She stopped him,

"John John, relax nothing happened. We were talking when you grabbed my arm and then you passed out from the alcohol. So I made you more comfortable and put you to bed." Chuckling once more, Bradshaw envisioned her dragging him to the bed.

"Thank you, Tina." Boldly she leaned over and kissed his cheek,

"You're very welcome." She sleepily smirked, "But you owe me." He laughed,

"I guess I do. Tell you what. One of these days I will take you to your favorite place to eat." She got out of bed, and Bradshaw couldn't help but admire her shapely legs. She pulled up her pants and turned to him,

"I'll hold you to that deal. Do you mind if I use your shower?" He chortled,

"Only if I get to watch you; you know for research purposes." She laughed. This was Bradshaw's way of barefaced flirting she knew very well. Two could play at that game. She smiled seductively, catching Bradshaw off guard,

"If you play your cards right…" She turned to leave but in two strides Bradshaw caught up with her,

"Don't push me, woman. I'm trying to be a gentleman." He growled in obvious arousal. She ran her finger down his chest and the areas she touched twitched,

"Sometimes you've got to cross that line, to get what you want." He looked deep into her eyes,

"I don't know if I want to cross that line. I don't think I can stop myself if I wanted to."

"Then don't…" She stepped towards him, "Stop." In one motion she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.


	5. The Way You Make Me Feel

Bradshaw instantly intensified the kiss as he ran his fingers through her hair. He tried to convey everything she meant to him all the years they had been together. She cautiously brought her hands to cup each side of his face as she entangled some of her fingers into his hair. For what seemed an eternity, both explored each other's mouths passionately. After so many years of chasing and pining after each, here they were together at last. Breaking the intimate contact, Bradshaw tilted her chin up so that their eyes met. He held the gaze as he looked into her dark blue eyes. A pink tint had been creeping up on her cheeks bringing a very different look to the tomboyish wrestler. Bradshaw smiled,

"You know we should get going." Krystina sighed,

"Do we have to?" Chuckling he nodded. Leave it to Krystina to bring some snark to the table. A ringing telephone brought them back to reality. She ran to the room and searched for her phone until she found it in her pants pocket. Cursing the person on the other side she answered, "This is Krystina."

"Hey babe, good morning! Did you sleep well?" Felicity's voice greeted her,

"Oh y-y-yeah couldn't have slept better. We're getting ready and then packing to go to Nashville-"

"Wait a minute, did you just say we meaning you and Bradshaw?" Felicity cutting in enthusiastically implied. Cursing under her breath, Krystina was mentally berating herself. How could she be so stupid in letting out that one little detail? Now she would have to endure hours of her prying for details,

"Don't get too excited, nothing like that happened anyway. I drank too much and couldn't make it to my hotel so I spent the night here. Look, we'll talk about it later." She heard Felicity chuckle,

"Alright Tina no need to worry. I was calling to see if you and John would want to join us in traveling to Nashville. Farooq is also joining us." Tina smiled,

"I'm game, but let me see if John wants to join us. She ran to the bedroom and looked over at John, "It's Felicity. She wanted to know if you wanted to join her and Dave. I'm going and Farooq will be there too."

"Sounds like fun, count me in." Tina returned to her friend on the phone,

"Yeah, John John is coming too. I just have to return my rental." Felicity grew excited,

"Okay, great! We're renting a van that way it'll be more spacious for all of us. We'll meet you at the rental place around twelve!" She gave Krystina the directions and bid her farewell. Krystina hung up the phone and sighed. She hoped that Felicity wouldn't push too hard for information on how exactly she ended up in Bradshaw's hotel room. Bradshaw appeared from the bedroom. He walked towards Krystina,

"So what's the plan?" She placed her phone on the end table,

"We're going to meet us at the rental place at noon." Bradshaw looked at his watch,

"That gives us about two hours. Want to grab some breakfast?" Krystina smiled,

"Sure sounds like a plan." He pulled her into his arms and held her for a while. She inhaled his scent enjoying the cologne he was wearing. He tilted her head up to meet her eyes and gently kissed her. Her eyes fluttered closed as she enjoyed the moment. He broke the kiss and smirked,

"I could get used to this." She scoffed as she rolled her eyes and gently shoved him. He chuckled as he watched her walk into the bathroom close the door behind her. He shook his head as he tried to rationalize how they got to the point where they were taking their relationship to the next level. He walked back to the bedroom and began to get dressed. He put on his shoes and finally began to pack his bags. About fifteen minutes later Krystina came out of the bathroom wearing just a towel. She was combing her hair when Bradshaw emerged from the bedroom. He caught a glance at her and swallowed hard. Although the towel was covering her body, he could tell that she took great care of herself that resulted in a great body. She caught him looking at her in the mirror,

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." He laughed and shook his head as he walked off. She walked to her suitcase and grabbed a clean outfit and returned to the bathroom. She quickly got dressed and braided her hair into a long braid. She sprayed on some perfume and looked for Bradshaw. When she found him she smiled,

"Are you ready to go?" He nodded and they both headed out the door. On the way there, Bradshaw held out his hand to her. She instantly grabbed his hand and the two walked into the cafeteria together. The picked a table and headed to the buffet line to grab their breakfast. After a few minutes they both returned to the table and began to eat. Bradshaw observed her and realized that the young woman only picked up a variety of fruit. Bradshaw whose plate was the complete opposite filled with protein pointed at her plate,

"Are you sure that what you're eating is going to be enough?" Krystina chuckled as she nodded,

"You sound like my dad. Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm usually not very hungry in the morning. I'll eat fruit instead of skipping the meal," She changed the subject, "I heard a rumor through the grape vine a couple of weeks ago that you and Ron were going to join my dad and Kurt Angle in a tag team match against Big Show, Brock Lesnar, Matt Morgan and Nathan Jones. Is it true?" It was Bradshaw's turn to nodded as he confirmed her suspicions,

"Yeah, it's going to be one hell of a match. It's also confirmed for Survivor Series. We're definitely going to beat those bastards!" Krystina laughed but she couldn't help but worry. Brock Lesnar and his goons weren't a group to mess with. They proved it time and time again with different wrestlers they went against whether in the ring out or outside the ring. She worried for Bradshaw and Farooq's safety. Bradshaw saw the worried look in her eyes, a look she rarely wore,

"Honey, don't worry. Farooq and I will be fine. Hell, we'll whoop their asses all across the ring and they'll wish they didn't fuck with us," He held his hand out to her which she took, "If we beat these guys there's no telling what could happen. Hell it'll open up the door for a tag team titles. It's long overdue Tina." She sighed as she looked at their hands,

"Just be careful ok? I need you in one piece. I remember plenty of times where I had to play nurse to you guys and it wasn't pretty for anyone to experience, especially a young kid like me." He smiled,

"You always took such great care of us Tina." She shrugged dismissing the compliment,

"It was the least I could do especially after you guys took me in and molded me into a decent wrestler." Bradshaw nodded as he ate his food. The rest of the time that they took for breakfast they both talked about different subjects that they were interested in taking time to get to know each other on a more intimate level. After they were finished with their meal, they headed back to Bradshaw's hotel room to make sure that they weren't leaving anything behind. Once they packed the rental with their suitcases, and checked out Bradshaw pulled her into his arms and passionately kissed her. She felt her knees buckle but his arm around her waist kept her on her feet. Once they parted the older man looked at her and smiled,

"I recall you holding it against your best friend for making out with her boyfriend every time they were together so I'd thought I'd get this out while I still can." Krystina smiled,

"Well, then I guess the good news it will make the arrival to Nashville that much sweeter." She kissed him again wrapping her arms around his neck. He wrapped her arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. Not caring if people were staring at them, after a few minutes they broke off the kiss and got into the car. Tina backed out of the parking lot while Bradshaw fiddled with the radio and they headed to the rental place to meet up with their friends.


	6. On the Road Again

Once they were a few miles away from the rental place they were going to meet their friends, they stopped at a gas station to fill the car's gas tank. Krystina stepped out of the car and began to pump the gas. She was staring off into space when she heard a man's voice,

"E-E-E-Excuse me Ms. Benoit?" She turned around and saw a man in his thirties with a small girl. She smiled,

"Hi! Can I help you?" the man smiled back relieved that she didn't react negatively,

"My daughter is a big fan of yours and we were wondering if you could take a picture with her?"

"Sure, I'd love to!" She posed for a few pictures with the girl. She talked for a few moments with the girl and her father until an idea popped in her head,

"Oh wait for just a moment!" She ran to the trunk and opened it. She opened her suitcase and found a t-shirt that was the girl's size and found a picture of herself and a white marker, "Sweetheart, what's your name?" The little girl smiled revealing her missing front teeth,

"Tina." Krystina couldn't help but smile,

"That's a great name!" She signed the picture: 'To Tina, follow your dreams and don't be afraid to work hard.' They young girl's smile got bigger and wider as she got the shirt and picture,

"Thank you Krystina!" The diva smiled,

"You're welcome Tina! Be sure to cheer me on in the next match!" The father, happy to see that his daughter was very happy, beamed,

"Thank you Ms. Benoit." Tina nodded,

"The pleasure was all mine." The two walked off as the gas pump clicked off the automatic mode. She smiled as she watched the two of them disappear off into the distance,

"Well that was really sweet of you." She turned around to see that Bradshaw had got out of the car and was watching her with a smile on his face. She saw that he had two drinks in his hands and thanked him when he handed her one of them, "Here's a sweet tea, I know it's your favorite." She smiled as she teased him,

"You know me so well." He shrugged,

"I should. We've only known each other for so many years." She nodded,

"Point taken; how much do I owe you for the refreshment kind sir?" Bradshaw pretended to stroke a beard as he sported a pensive look,

"You owe me…one kiss madam!" She laughed,

"Very well, then I shall pay my debt sir." She quickly kissed him on the cheek. Bradshaw gave her a mock angry look,

"That's not what I meant." She chuckled and gave him a playful pout,

"Aww poor baby didn't get what he wanted?" Bradshaw poked her in her side causing her to giggle, "Stop! I'm ticklish!" Bradshaw chuckled darkly. He'll have to save that information for later. She gave him a playful glare as she looked down at her cellphone, "We'd better get to the rental place before we get behind in the itinerary for Nashville." Bradshaw nodded and they both got into the car and drove off to the intended location. After a few minutes they found the place and parked the car. They both pulled out their suitcases and walked in. They were greeted by Dave, Felicity, and Farooq who were waiting for them. They all greeted each other with hugs and handshakes as Felicity looked at the two of them,

"Well the paperwork is all ready to go. We're just waiting for them to prepare the van and we'll be off." They sat in the waiting area chatting away. After a few moments Krystina saw Felicity walk over to the desk where one of the rental place's employees was standing. She decided to head over to where she was to help her out if anything was needed.

Farooq who hadn't said much the whole afternoon since being the third wheel in accompanying Felicity and Dave to the rental place surveyed his friend intently. He saw him looking after Krystina with a slightly goofy grin on his face. He chuckled and shook his head,

"So what's going on between you two?" Bradshaw shrugged,

"We're more than friends but nothing official, so there's some change but we're taking it slow. I'm not complaining because I waited a long time so I'm going to go with the flow. I don't know what she wants but she seems happy to be with me." Farooq nodded, really happy for his friend. The two of them saw Felicity approach them with a smile,

"So are you and Krystina finally a thing?" Bradshaw smiled, shocked at how fast news traveled,

"Not yet, but we're making progress. How did you know?" Felicity gave a knowing look to the older man,

"When she let it slip that she was in the hotel room with you." Farooq's eyes widened,

"Wha-?" Bradshaw held his hands up defensively

"Hey now, Nothing happened. After you guys left the alcohol kicked in and I nearly passed out on her. She helped me to bed, and passed out herself. Nothing happened. I would never take advantage of her in that state." Felicity and Farooq nodded. They both knew Bradshaw well enough to recognize that the man was a gentleman with women and would never pressure them to do something that they would regret later unlike a lot of the WWE roster would do. Felicity grinned,

"Well I'm happy you two are getting close. It's long overdue. I know she's in good hands, but take care of her ok? She's my best friend." Bradshaw gave her a small smile and nodded.

After briefly speaking to the rental place employee, Krystina was handed the keys to the van. She thanked the employee and headed to the group. She grinned and showed them the keys, "The van's ready to go. We have to figure out something important, who's going to drive first?" Everyone looked around hoping that someone would volunteer. Farooq sighed,

"Alright, I'll do it. I may need a relief driver though." Everyone laughed and thanked him for driving. They all grabbed their bags and headed toward the van where the employees who were there wished them good luck. After packing the van and taking their seats, they took off.

In the van the five of them joked and laughed as they told recalled stories that happened while they began their careers with the WWE. By far Farooq, being the oldest veteran had the best stories that caused the others to roar with laughter. The conversations began to split off into groups with the guys talking to each other and the girls getting into their own conversation.

Hours later, the five of them reached the hotel they were supposed to stay in for the next few days. Felicity and Krystina got out of the van and made sure that everyone's rooms were ready before they got their stuff out of the van. When the courtesy clerk informed them that their rooms were ready, the divas ran back to the van and let them know that the rooms were ready. They unloaded all of their stuff and headed into the hotel. Farooq waved goodbye to everyone letting them know that he was rooming with Mark Henry. Dave and Felicity waved goodbye as mentioned that they were rooming together. Krystina felt the color creeping onto her face as she realized that she and Bradshaw were going to room together. She really liked him, but she was really nervous about rooming with a guy she had just started seeing. She turned to look at him and saw that he had a rosy tinge to his cheeks as well as he rubbed the back of his neck,

"Well," He stated, his Texan drawl more evident than ever, "I know it's a little early to ask, but would you like to room with me?" Krystina smiled. Seeing that Bradshaw was as nervous as she was put her at instant ease. She smiled as she nodded her head,

"Well then, I guess we'll have to go inspect our room." Bradshaw nodded as he took her free hand in his and led her to their hotel room.


End file.
